Storage-battery cell.



Patented Au I5, I899;

A. K. WESTERDAHL.

STORAGE BATTERY CELL.

(Application fiked June 24, 1898.)

(No Model.)

INVENTOI? A? MM A TTORNE Y5 camp STATES PATENT OFFICE,

AXEL K. WESTERDAHL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

STO RAG E-BATTERY CELL. L

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 631,191, dated August15, 1899.

Application filed 1m 24, 1398.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, AxEL K. WESTERDAHL, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of New York city, county of New York, and State of NewYork, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in StorageBatteries and Cells, of which the following is a specification,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forminga part thereof,in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to improvements in storage batteries and cells;and the object thereof is to facilitate the operation of opening andclosing the cells, whereby they may be quickly filled, cleaned, andeffectively closed without the necessity of using a sealing compound.

The invention will be hereinafter fully described, and specifically setforth in the annexed claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure1 is a vertical sectional elevation of a battery-cell embodying myimprovement. Fig.- 2 is avertical sectional elevation taken on the linea: a: of Fig. 1,'and Fig. 3 is a sectional plan View taken on line pg ofFig. 1.

In the practice of my invention I employ an ordinary box or casing A, ofhard rubber or other suitable material. This box has projections aformed integrally upon the bottom thereof, upon which the plates B and Bare adapted to rest. These plates are of the'usual L shape, havingprojections b and 1) extended upwardly beyond the edge of the box forthe purpose of making connections. For closing the cells I employ asoft-rubber plate C, having apertures c and 0 cut therein for engagementwith the projectionsb and b of the battery-plates B and B.

Located centrally of the flexible plate 0 is a rectangular opening 0,and engaging an interior groove 0 of the plate 0 is a plate or cover D,composed, preferably, of transparent glass, permitting inspection of theinterior of the cell. Any other suitable insulating material may beemployed, if desired, such as hard rubber, porcelain, &c. This saidplate D is of an area slightly larger than the groove 0 whereby when itis forced within the said Serial No. 684,396. (No model.)

groove the opening in the plate 0 is expanded andjts outer edges areforced into secure engagement with the inner walls of the box A and withthe extensions of the battery-plates, thus providing an efiicient coverto prevent leakage of the fluid contained within the cells.

The removable cover is preferably located exactly at the upper edge ofthe casing A, and to maintain it in alinement therewithintegrally-formed projections c are extended from-the lower surface ofthe flexible plate (3,

and they rest upon the upper edges of the battery-plates. The plate D,forming part of the removable cover, is preferably supplied with anopening d, adapted for venting the cells and for filling the same. Ifdesired, this opening may be made through the flexible plate 0, asillustrated by dotted lines (1, Fig. 3 of the drawings.

In the operation and use of the device the plates B and B are set withinthe casing A, as illustrated in the drawings. The flexible plate 0 isthen placed in position, after which the plate D is forced intoengagement with the groove 0 thus providing an effective and water-tightcover for the cells, which can be readily removed when desired for thepurpose of cleaning the cells and the battery-plates, and it is obviousthat the cover may be again attached after the cells are replaced, andinasmuch as no cement is used the operation of opening and closing thecells is greatly facilitated.

It will be specially noticed that the elastic or yielding marginalcover-plate O is forced closely to the main casing-walls and to thewalls of the battery-plate or other cell-studs b and b bylateralexpansion caused by direct lateral pressure of the harder centralcoverplate D and without the aid of metallic or other clamping devicesof any kind, whereby a most simple, easy, and efiective closure of thecell is obtained by desirable nonmetallic parts not affecting thecontents of the cell and unaffected by them.

My invention may of course be adapted to cover battery-cells having around or othershaped mouth or opening and interior elements of anycharacter, as will be readily understood.

Having thus described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A battery-cell cover comprising an elastic or yielding marginalportion having openings admitting the battery-element studs orprojections and also having a central opening, and a harderinterior'portion adapted to forcibly enter said central opening andthereby expand the marginal portion by direct lateral pressure to thecell-walls and element studs, substantially as described.

2. A battery-cell cover comprising an elastic or yielding plate, havingopenings admitting the terminal connectors, and also a central openinghaving a ledge formed therein, and a rigid plate adapted to be forcedinto said central opening to close the same, substantially as set forth.

3. A battery-cell cover comprising an elastic plate, having openings atthe edge admitting the projections of the cell-grids and also a centralopening, a rigid plate adapted to forcibly enter and close said centralopening, and projections integral with said elastic plate bearing on thetop of the cell-grid to retaiii the elastic plate in proper positionwhen said rigid plate is being forced into said central position,substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname,in presence of two witnesses, this 22d day of June, 1898.

AXEL K. WVESTERDAHL,

Witnesses:

M. G. MCCLEAN, SADIE RUBINSTEIN,

